


For King and Country

by Toothpaste_Fresh



Category: The King Dragon Canon (Web Series)
Genre: Gen, Implied/Referenced Character Death, fleshing out gunther's backstory because he is best boy, minimal proofreading we die like archibald
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-19
Updated: 2021-02-19
Packaged: 2021-03-15 19:47:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 564
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29564217
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Toothpaste_Fresh/pseuds/Toothpaste_Fresh
Summary: Something terrible is happening in the village.Gunther waits for Lysanderoth to come home.
Relationships: Gunther & Lysanderoth





	For King and Country

“...so join me Gunther, and together we can both be safe.”

“No! What’s gotten into you!?”

* * *

Gunther can feel tremors in the ground.

It’s bringing back memories, they’re usually older and hazier, but right now he can remember it with clarity: the ground shaking as his brother and his mother scramble to gather supplies, his younger self trying to stay out of the way. He remembers how those tremors gradually became the sounds of thousands of feet marching and he remembers running frantically from a mass of soldiers on the horizon.

He doesn’t like this.

Where is Lysanderoth? He should be back by now. He’s just returned from his mission on the other side; if people were marching on their village again, shouldn’t he have known? Should he have told them all?

Maybe that’s what he’s doing right now.

* * *

“I… I don’t understand why you’re doing this.”

“We don’t have any other choice Gunther, you haven’t seen their armies. You don’t remember the last time they attacked our village.”

“Did they brainwash you while you were pretending to be with them? Did they kidnap you? Torture you?”

“No Gunther, listen. This is the only way to keep us safe.”

* * *

He starts packing.

They’re already prepared this time, a bag always ready with the essentials, but still he fills it with whatever else he can find. If they’re going to have to run again, then there’s not much time. He needs to be ready the moment Lysanderoth returns.

* * *

“If you’re worried about this village being too outspoken, we can just move to another one. Then we can provide our support more quietly from there. You don’t have to do this.”

“You don’t understand, they’ll conquer this village, and then the next and the next and the next. They won’t stop. We'd be better off joining them instead.”

“…”

“You have so little faith in us.”

“Because we have so little power.”

* * *

He goes to the well to fill their waterskins for the journey and it’s eerily quiet.

Where is everyone? Don’t they feel the tremors too? Don’t they hear the footsteps on the horizon? Maybe some people are gone already, but he hasn’t heard any commotion outside, and nobody came to warn him.

He walks through the silent streets back home as the marching noise keeps getting louder. Memories of their last escape are coming in waves now, and he remembers everyone shouting and scrambling. He remembers a town in chaos.

This is anything but that.

* * *

“I’m not going to join you.”

“I’m sorry Gunther, I should have told you about this sooner, then you’d have understood.”

“...Are you going to kill me too?”

“No. I won’t kill you. But the king’s soldiers are almost here. You should run now if you want to survive.”

* * *

He’s sitting, leg bouncing up and down with impatience when the door opens. It’s Lysanderoth. _Oh thank goodness, he was getting so worried. They can finally leave now_. But there’s blood on Lysanderoth’s clothes, and he’s holding a gun.

Gunther starts running for the first aid supplies.

“Lysanderoth what happened? Are you hurt? Are the soldiers here?” But he can still hear the marching in the distance, the soldiers shouldn’t have arrived yet.

“Lysanderoth, what’s going on?”

His brother sits down.

“Calm down Gunther, it’s not my blood.”

He sets the gun aside.

“I believe it's time we had a talk.”


End file.
